Rising with the Sweetness
by Momori
Summary: Inuyasha and friends now proceed with life in the present! So now, Kagome convinces her friends, to start off a new project of building a coffee shop to make a living. But will the little romances between the pairs grow deep as the cafe progresses?(AU)
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi is the owner of Inuyasha and all of its characters.  
  
A/N: Pssst, I'm back! ^-^ Long time no write, ne? Well, another humor fic for all of you~! Enjoy!  
  
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Rising With the Sweetness  
Chapter 1: Moving on  
  
  
  
"INUYASHA, WHERE'S THE FRIGGEN HAMMER?!"  
Kagome held the boards together along the bare wall as sawdust rained on her. That hanyou just never seemed to get used to adjusting to his new life...dang it...  
  
She found the hammer right next to her foot, and bent down to retrieve it. She hammered away at the wall until she felt strands of silver hair in her mouth.  
"ICK, INUYASHA!"  
"You called me?"  
He bent over her working form as he loomed above her head. His hair dangled limply in front of her face as she scowled at him.  
"Never mind, I found it."  
He grumbled and stalked off, hoisting up ten boards on his shoulders. Sango ran past him as she entered the 'café in progress', making a face as he passed.  
"Geeze, being macho-half-man is one thing, being macho-half-man-with-bad-odor is an entire different story... Give the poor dog some deodorant..."  
Inuyasha gave the girl a death glare before he leapt up onto the roof. Sango came walking over with a boxful of screws.  
"Kagome-chan, are these the kind you needed?"  
She turned around, wiping the sweat from her brow.  
"Oh, perfect. Thanks."  
The two of them left their work right then, and went outside. The girls admired the ever-improving frame of the new café.  
  
  
  
After the five of them had defeated Naraku, the Shikon jewel perished, leaving all of the Japan in the old years to live in harmony. Thus Kagome had decided to resume onto college in the present time, as did the rest who decided to join her. They bid the remaining of their families farewell, and through the past years, Kagome tutored each of them at night once classes were over. And after a few years of hard work, she graduated, and at the least Inuyasha, Miroku, and Sango were allowed to live as 'civilized' beings in the real world, getting passports and whatnot. As for Shippo, the animal health care associations finally admitted that he was not an animal, but a human, and they let him go. And now here they stood, building their very own café to carry on for their living. The five of them ended up buying a small house, and lived in it as a cozy, tight friendship family. Life was just too kind...  
  
But then Kagome got distracted in her thoughts when she heard a holler...from the portapotties...  
"WHERE THE HELL IS THE TOILET PLUNGER?!"  
The girls stared blankly at Shippo, who had the thing stuck to his head like a hat, proudly marching into the cafe as if he was king and was wearing a crown. Sango gazed at the portable stall in pity as it rocked and bounced around, a trickle of water leaking from the edge of the door. She gave a yell.  
"Miroku, what's going on in there?!"  
"GOOD MOTHER OF WOMEN, LET ME OUT!! OUT I SAY!!"  
Kagome pointed at the stall.  
"Refresh my memory, did I tell him how to use a portapottie?"  
Sango shook her head, and sighing, Kagome reluctantly walked over to the stall, giving the door a hard kick as it flew open. Miroku came falling out in a heap, the bottom of his jeans dripping with wetness... He kissed the ground as he attempted to stand.  
"Thank Buddha, I thought that toilet was about to drown me..."  
He crawled up to Sango's feet and latched himself onto them, rubbing his cheek adoringly against her jeans.  
"Only then would I have regretted not seeing you ever again..."  
She turned to Kagome with a frown.  
"You should've just tipped that stupid stall over and left him there...see if he'll really drown this time..."  
  
  
***  
  
  
The weather was just beautiful, and it would've been a shame had the five of them decided on eating indoors. So Kagome set up a nice lunch in the shade of a tree nearby a Shinto temple down the street. Spring was here, and the girls were looking forward to seeing the cherry blossoms bloom, but being in the urban area, there were no cherry blossom trees around. In any case, lunch was pleasant.  
Miroku gave a tug at his baggy jeans.  
"I miss my robes, Kagome-sama..."  
She waved a finger at him, shaking her head wisely.  
"In the present day, Miroku, girls are not easily attracted when the male is not wearing clothing of style. As for your dialect, you are doing fine, just remove the '-sama' from my name, ne?"  
He sighed, but nonetheless felt grateful for coming into the present day...after all, Sango was wearing clothing that was slightly more reveali-  
  
His thoughts were intruded when he felt Sango's glare of death enter his state of thinking. He could do nothing but smile warily and continue eating his rice ball.  
  
  
***  
  
After lunch, Inuyasha was up on the roof again, putting down boards with a hammer and handful of nails. He hated hammering. For crying out loud, the last time he tried it, he brought that piece of metal head down so hard it made a hole in the roof... He needed to learn to be more 'elegant' in the art of hammering, as Kagome put it. He was pretty much getting used to it by now, in the same way he was adjusting to the clothes he was wearing and yaddayaddayadda. Like Miroku, he wore a pair of baggy jeans, (but NOT sagging, and he is NOT revealing his boxers...) along with a white t-shirt with his sleeves rolled up. He still had the rosary, but Kagome didn't really 'sit' him as much anymore, so it didn't matter anyway. He used up all his boards and rose to fetch more, when-  
"YAAAAAARGH!"  
He fell face forward, splinters grazing his cheek. He lay there at a slant, clutching at the roof beneath him as his body slowly began inching towards the ledge two feet away.  
"Crap..."  
He tried to scramble up, but scrambling up BACKWARDS wasn't doing him any help...except helping him go DOWN... His chin was at the ledge now, his hands gripping the edge of the roof. Cautiously, he turned his head around to see what he'd tripped on. Apparently, he didn't trip on anything. He twitched at the sight of right pant leg nailed onto the roof...  
"Damn it...!!"  
Right then, Kagome, Sango, and Miroku came running over, looking up at the helpless Inuyasha. All they could see was his head over the ledge, a horrified expression painted on his face.  
"Inuyasha! Get down from there! What's going on?!"  
"NOTHING!!"  
He waved them off annoyingly as he began to sweat, his arms starting to give way.  
"What are you doing? Fix your position before you fall off the roof, stupid!"  
He growled at Sango, but his voice faltered into a whimper as his arms gave a jolt, his hands freely letting go of the ledge...  
"SHIT!!"  
The three of them stood watching in horror as he began to slide off the roof, but he stopped suddenly at the point where he was dangling off the roof from waist up. Blood began rushing to his head. But then, he froze in the horrible realization that his pants were sliding away from him. He could feel his belt slowly releasing him, lowering him closer towards the ground in an agonizingly slow speed. Kagome pointed at him.  
"Inuyasha always liked to wear his belt loose, didn't he?"  
"Ah, well, that explains it..." Sango nodded in agreement.  
"Heey, I didn't know he liked polka-dot flannel boxers!"  
"YOU IDIOTS!! DO SOMETHING!!"  
"Your choice! You want the swat team or the fire department?"  
Sango inched towards Kagome and whispered.  
"More like TV Japan or CNN News..." (I do NOT own these companies)  
"I HEARD THAT!!!"  
Kagome was about to run and get...well, SOMETHING, but it was already too late. Inuyasha blushed bright red as his pants began slipping off at an alarming rate. He clutched his belt in his last effort.  
"N-NOOOOO~!!!"  
Kagome stared wide-eyed whilst Sango slapped her head and covered her eyes. Miroku could do nothing but shake his head in sheer pity as the poor hanyou's pants slipped off entirely, dropping Inuyasha pant-less off the roof. Gravity did the rest.  
  
  
"...."  
  
  
  
Kagome couldn't help looking away from the sight as Sango put a sympathetic arm around her, shaking her head. Miroku was in the back stifling his laughter, but immediately stopped when an old woman came stumbling by, waving her cane around like she was about to kill somebody with it. She gaped at Inuyasha...for a second.  
"Young 'uns these days, have they no shame...?"  
And with that she closed her eyes in disgust and walked away, leaving Miroku to roll around in the dirt in laughter.  
  
  
***  
  
  
That night, in their little cozy house, Sango sat at the table with Kagome planning out a menu.  
"The usual lattes, the espresso, the cappuccino, the mocha, urrrr..."  
Kagome whipped out what appeared to be a textbook. Sango watched curiously as she flipped it open to a page containing 'helpful tips and ideas'.  
"Kagome-chan, what's this? It looks like those books you used to tutor us..."  
"It is, but this is something that I used during my college years."  
Inuyasha loomed over them to take a peek.  
"What is it?"  
Kagome grinned proudly as she showed them the cover of the book.  
"Culinary Arts?"  
They seemed...surprised... But nonetheless, the girl continued grinning.  
"Sure! I've always wanted to a chef, like my mom."  
"Keh."  
Kagome ignored his comment and continued to scan through the page. But she suddenly looked up, and stood up abruptly, only to collide her head into the lamp hanging above the table.  
"I GOT IT-OW!"  
The blub cracked as it swung side to side.  
Sango rested her head on her chin, watching the girl clutch her head in misery.  
"I saw the light bulb go off. Literally."  
Kagome rubbed her head, calling over to Miroku who was on the Internet.  
"Miroku, can you go look up 'tea' on the search engine?"  
Sango perked up.  
"Tea...that sounds pretty good, but don't the other shops do that too?"  
"I'm sure we can alter that a bit...let's just see what comes up online."  
Miroku scrolled down the page, reading aloud the options.  
"Teafreaks online, How to detect toxic teas, teas for medicinal purposes, teaceremonies.com..."  
Sango began tapping her fingers on the table.  
"...teasucks.com, soothe the heart teas, cooking with Martha Stuart..." (now THAT I don't WANT to own...)  
The girls made a face, and watched Miroku suspiciously as he paused for a second, his eyes emotionlessly staring at the screen.  
"Miroku? What are you doing?"  
"...tampons to the fullest; free condoms, tummy fat loss..."  
"MIROKU!!"  
  
  
***  
  
  
Kagome stayed up late, the lamp at her desk softly shining on the piece of paper in front of her. Sango was already asleep, curled up in a ball in one of the beds in this single room they shared. The guys slept next door, and no sound came forth from their room. She sighed. Cooking was one thing. Thinking of recipes was entirely another. However, she did have a few ideas listed.  
  
Peppermint hot chocolate on cold winter nights, candied fruit bites and chocolate covered strawberries for snack time, elegant cream lattes with a pinch of cinnamon for that special someone...  
  
She began to doze, resting her head on her arms as her eyelashes fluttered. A soft, low voice muttered in her ear.  
"You're still awake?"  
Her head rose, and she saw Inuyasha at the doorway.  
"Inuyasha..."  
He came beside her, and looked over at her list. Surprisingly, he smiled, leaving Kagome a little curious on what he was thinking.  
"You ought to sleep before you pass out on us tomorrow."  
She pouted up at him.  
"But we need ideas! No, I'm going to sit here and think until I-"  
Without a moments notice, she felt an arm slide beneath her knees and one behind her back. He hoisted her up from the chair, princess style, her hands gripping his t-shirt. She growled.  
"Put me down, you beast."  
He returned her frown and dropped her on her bed, her expression unchanged. But it softened, and it turned into a gentle smile.  
"You worry for me too much."  
Even in the dark, she could always detect a pair of blushing cheeks.  
"Keh."  
He didn't realize that she was staring at him until their eyes met, his blush still visible.  
"What?"  
She shook her head as she climbed in under the covers.  
"You changed...but you haven't changed. I swear, you can really go from a form of Satan to a sugar plum, you know that?"  
He waved away the comment. For a second, he stood there, watching her close her eyes. She could've sworn that he slightly bended over her, before he changed his mind and walked away. And with more ideas brewing in her head, sleep took over her world of dreams.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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TO BE CONTINUED...  
  
I greatly appreciate comments!! ^^  
  
~Momori^^ 


	2. Knocking on Hearts

Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi is the owner of Inuyasha and all of its characters.  
  
A/N: I'm so glad you're enjoying the story thus far!! ^-^ Thanks for all your comments, I appreciate it. Read on!  
  
  
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Rising With the Sweetness  
  
Chapter 2: Knocking on Hearts  
  
  
  
The building of the shop was going so rapidly, it made their eyes whirl. It was either that they were so tired they were hallucinating, or they were just going blissfully fast with their hanyou's macho strength. In Kagome's eyes, he was like their own personal superman.  
"Inuyasha, any coffee before we head on for the shop?"  
Kagome called out from the kitchen as she packed things into the mini cooler. Inuyasha came lumbering down the stairs, still wearing his sweat pants and walking around with a bare chest rubbing his hair with a crisp, white towel. She gave him a funny look as he sleepily made his way to the fridge.  
"You haven't even CHANGED yet?"  
He looked up from his milk carton. He never really bothered to use a cup. Kagome just wish she had known a little earlier that he'd been doing likewise since he GOT here...and she'd been pouring milk into her coffee every morning since then...  
"Mmmmmm?"  
She sighed, looking him over from head to toe with skeptical eyes. She finally shook her head and grabbed hold of his hand, dragging him back up the stairs along with his milk carton.  
"Mmmmf?!"  
He stumbled up the stairs and fell over on his bed as she sorted through his wardrobe. She worked so hard just to get cash for everyone's new outfits...  
  
In the end she chose a black t-shirt, specially hand embroidered with her own hands the big kanji character for 'Inu' (dog) in red thread. He never admitted it, but he seemed to be very fond of its special look. She tossed him a pair of jeans and shut the closet door.  
"That should do it. Don't forget your socks, ok?"  
Inuyasha examined his picked out outfit, and looked at her with an unexplainable expression on his face.  
"What?"  
He shook his head and pulled the t-shirt on over his head.  
"It kinda feels like I have a mom agai-"  
His head went falling backwards at the hard swipe of her hand.  
"ARGH!"  
She rubbed her fist.  
"You call me mom again and I'll slug you. Pfft, what am I? A hen with her chick?"  
He glared up at her from the bed.  
"Tweet tweet, I'm all beat, momma's soup with me as meat."  
He dodged another blow as she marched to the door. But she sighed as she turned to face him.  
She forced a smug grin on her face and mimicked a sweet voice.  
"Alright, you be a good boy and be nice to your friends. Don't talk to strangers!"  
Right then, she lunged at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and slamming her lips full force into his left cheek.   
"Mommy wuvs you!!!"  
She quickly dashed out the door and picked up the mini cooler, running out to the streets while laughing whole heartedly all the way. She left Inuyasha in the room looking rather confused, wondering whether he was supposed to be fuming or blushing. Either way, he stumbled after her, remembering to lock the door as he grabbed his shoes and leapt down the street.  
"Kagome, you retard!!"  
  
  
***  
  
  
  
"Miroku tell me how this feels. I think it's pretty good in weight."  
Sango dropped the hammer in his hand and he clutched it, lifting it slightly up and down as he felt its weight.  
"It's alright. But I'd like you to try this one."  
She took the hammer from his hand and made a swinging motion, as if hammering a nail.  
"I agree. It's pretty good."  
Sango and Miroku had left the house at 7:00 that morning, and stopped by the hardware store for new tools. Hammers happened to take the longest to choose.  
  
Miroku suddenly stopped by the newspaper rack as they began to leave the store. Sango looked at him curiously.  
"What is it, Miroku?"  
They were pretty used to talking with people in public by now, but reading was still a challenge. After all, they didn't have as much of the kanji characters and things of that sort in their time...  
"I'm rather confused with this article. Come take a look."  
She looked over his shoulder as he pointed to the large print, being the headline.  
"There's the kanji for 'dog'. There's a whole bunch of characters kinda stuck together here, and I can make out 'dirt', and oh, here's 'person' but it's inside some sorta little box shaped thing..."  
Sango pointed to it as well.  
"That's odd, why are all these kanji stuck together? I see 'mouth', and 'heart' over here..."  
"Oh, there's the word 'nine', and 'tree'."  
Miroku pursed his lips in confusion.  
"Dirt, person, box thing, dog, mouth, heart, nine, and tree?"  
They looked at each other quizzically.  
"What are the rest of the little squiggly lines?"  
"Sango, let's not make this any harder for the both of us."  
"Right."  
The two of them thought for a moment. Suddenly, Miroku seemed to understand.  
"A person fed a dog some dirt in a box thing, and it went from his mouth into his heart, so it split apart into nine dogs and turned into a tree...?"  
Sango looked bewildered.  
"So what, basically the dog turned into an amoeba?"  
He looked at her.  
"A wha-?"  
"I'd rather not go into explinations, but it's something that divides itself."  
He nodded wisely.  
"I assume that's what happened."  
He paused.  
"How tragic."  
She sighed as she walked with Miroku out the automatic doors.  
"Do you think Inuyasha would split into nine baby Inuyashas, then into a tree if we fed him dirt?"  
  
  
***  
  
  
  
Inuyasha hammered down the last bit of the roof before leaping down to admire his work. He beamed at its sturdiness.  
"Yo, MOM!"  
Kagome poked her her head out of the main door.  
"What, chickling?"  
He grinned at her with much pride and enthusiasm.  
"I finished the roof!"  
She went outside to join him, and the two of them stood together to admire the roof.  
"Not bad, eh?"  
She patted his back affectionately.  
"Quite nice, Inuyasha. Come help me with the interior now."  
They walked inside to find Sango and Miroku putting up the walls. Shippo was drawing out the correct sizes of the boards on large pieces of lumber. He was quite intelligent in math.  
She led him over to a table, with large blue prints spread out. She described to him how the plumbing will be installed, as well as the designs of the tables she wished to have.  
"I was thinking of cherry wood tables, probably rectangular. I also need matching chairs, and there should be a counter over towards the back of the room. We'll use the back room for storage, and use the other one for the kitchen."  
Inuyasha sighed. He was the main carpenter of the entire project, and Kagome had to admit, he was a wonderful artist.  
"Alright. So what should I work on?"  
She sighed.  
"We've been working on this sucker for at least a year now. Sango and Miroku should be done with the walls soon, so cut up the boards Shippo drew out and begin hammering them to the floor. They'll be the final layer of wood, and we'll stain it and polish it once all is complete."  
  
She herself began choosing the colors for the building. For the inside, she imagined something like a reddish, cinnamon color with intricate patterns and designs along the edges. And since both the cherry wood and the color itself might be a bit dark, she decided perhaps to balance it out, she'd paint out a simple pattern on the chairs with white.  
For the decor, she knew it would be rather empty if there was nothing on the walls. So, she decided to mount a humongous piece of heavy fancy paper, and place a box of pastels beside it for the customers to come in and freely draw what they wished. Of course, she'd put a sign saying nothing inappropriate...  
"Kagome-chan, the walls are finished!"  
Sango hugged Kagome happily as the two of them gazed at the little interior. It looked fabulous. Miroku wiped the sweat from his brow.  
"Well, looks like we should help out Inuyasha with the floor, Sango."  
The two of them ran off to where Inuyasha was pounding on the boards. Kagome looked on as her friends worked busily. She'd really hoped they'd be happy here, and she was relieved to see that they seemed to be.  
"Oi, MOM!! WHAT'S FOR DINNER?"  
Miroku looked at Inuyasha dubiously.  
"Why are you calling Kagome-sama your mother?"  
Inuyasha blushed slightly, but it dissappeared in a flash.  
"She just is."  
Sango and Miroku looked at each other curiously. Miroku couldn't help questioning about the topic. He whispered to Sango.  
"Are they hiding something?"  
Sango looked at him, confused.  
"Hiding? Like what?"  
He put a hand under his chin.  
"Perhaps Inuyasha has made his own heir-"  
"MIROKU!!"  
Inuyasha looked up at Sango, startled. She shook her head nervously and turned back to Miroku.  
"Stop thinking such dirty thoughts!"  
"I'm not! But just, why else would he call her mother?"  
"Miroku, I think he meant that Kagome was HIS mother..."  
"Oh? Then perhaps it's Kagome-sama who's hiding-"  
"You don't get the joke, do you?"  
Right then, Kagome hollered back.  
"IF YOU WANT A MEAL, YOU OUGHT TO COOK FOR YOURSELF, CHICKLING!!"  
Miroku looked at Sango.  
"Chickling?"  
"Miroku, I don't get the joke as much as you do, so just shut up."  
  
  
  
***  
  
  
  
Everyone was feeling fresh from the shower, and Sango, Kagome, and Miroku found themselves sitting around the table with the newspaper.  
"I still don't understand, why did the dog split into nine dogs, and then into a tree?"  
Sango scratched her head wonderingly. Inuyasha grunted from reading his book.   
"You see Sango, I bet there was something in the dirt that made the dog into an amobelia or whatever you call it."  
Miroku began explaining. Kagome sat there, reading the article in utter silence.  
"So are you saying this was a case of food poisoning? Oh, and it's amoeba, by the way."  
Miroku nodded.  
"Exactly. For example, perhaps he mixed in the powder of cleaning."  
"Why the powder of cleaning?"  
"Why, of course it's toxic!"  
"But Miroku, there are LOTS of powders that are toxic..."  
"Sango, I'm saying just for example..."  
Kagome raised a hand between them.  
"Wait a sec, what IS this powder of cleaning?"  
Inuyasha muttered.  
"Laundry detergent."  
"Oh."  
Kagome suddenly put a hand to her mouth, and in seconds she was on the floor laughing, cackling almost. Inuyasha looked up from his book. Miroku's glasses slid down his nose slightly as they all watched her in bewilderment. She wiped the tears from her eyes.  
"Heeheehee, sorry, it's just-HAHAHAHAHA...."  
Sango chuckled slightly.  
"Kagome-chan, what is it?"  
She finally ended her fit and she led them through the headline.  
"This says 'Shitsunai ken nimo kan sen.' Meaning there are bad bacteria even in house hold dogs."  
Miroku looked slightly dissappointed that his prediction was wrong, but brightened a little.  
"Well, at least I knew that there was some sort of bad thing inside a dog..."  
Sango, on the other hand, looked worried.  
"What is this bacteria, Kagome-chan?"  
"It's apparently called eqnicox in Japanese, and it's a type of bug that first comes form vermin like rats, and it gets into the predators bodies, and the bugs lay eggs and that's where it can even get into human bodies. So the paper is just telling us nowadays, dogs can give you bad sicknesses."  
  
And in complete unison, their three heads turned to Inuyasha. He looked up a second time.  
"What?"  
Kagome muttered.  
"Who knows what's in HIS body..."  
His ears perked up.  
"What?!"  
"Nothing!"  
  
  
In the end, Inuyasha ditched his book and joined them in flipping through the newspaper for practicing their reading skills. Kagome led them through.  
"..okay, so here's 'person', and there's the number '2' before it, so that reads 'futari', meaning 'two people'."  
"Ooooh, okay, so what happens when there's a four? I mean, I understand what it means, but..."  
"You would pronounce it 'yonin'. It's confusing since there's a different way of saying the number of people in particular numbers..."'  
"Ano...Kagome-sama?"  
"Remove the -sama, Miroku."  
"Kagome?"  
"Yes?"  
"There's another article about dogs here. What's it about?"  
Inuyasha's ears perked up then. He leaned over for a closer look.  
  
  
'RATE OF DOGS BEING NEUTERED RISING, POSSIBLE REQUIREMENT IN FUTURE YEARS FOR NEUTERED PETS'  
  
  
"Well...?"  
Kagome snapped out of her daze.  
"Yes?"  
"What does it say?"  
She looked up to see Inuyasha in her face, looking extremely curious.  
"I-I don't think you'd want to-"  
"Of course I do!"  
"Hehehehe...no you don't..."  
"Kagome..."  
"What?"  
"TELL ME!!"  
"NO!!"  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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TO BE CONTINUED...  
  
Did you like it? Hope you drop me a review! -_^ 


	3. Mornings

Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi is the owner of Inuyasha and all of its characters.  
  
  
A/N: For all readers! Are you enjoying the fic thus far? ^^ For those of you with email, please let me know if you'd like for me to notify you with chapter updates! It would be best if you could drop me a note with a review...ehehehehe...^^ Thanks again, happy reading!  
  
  
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Rising With the Sweetness  
  
Chapter 3: Mornings  
  
  
  
Sango woke as the sunlight touched her face at the sunrise. She closed her lids, about to doze when she felt her nose being tickled at the scent of coffee. She'd acquired a fondness for it since she'd gotten here, and she rose to retrieve herself a cup.  
  
  
Downstairs, she climbed down in her light green tank top and plaid, green flannel pants. She found Kagome beside a pot, stirring its contents. She averted her brown-eyed gaze to the sleepy-eyed Sango.  
"Good morning, Sango-chan. You're up quite early."  
Rubbing her eyes, Sango took a seat at the table. She looked at the clock. 4:00AM.  
"Kagome-chan, what are you doing at this hour?"  
"I couldn't sleep. I couldn't help trying to fix up this recipe I thought of. Give it a try, will you?"  
She handed her a steaming mug, two-thirds full of its mixture. It stirred itself in circles in a creamy, mocha color. Slowly, she took a sip, her tongue wincing at the heat. She'd expected the usual bitter bite of the coffee, but was surprisingly greeted with a warm sweetness. She stared down at her cup in awe.  
"This is amazing. What-"  
"Believe it or not, this isn't exactly what you would call coffee."  
Sango's returned her a disbelieving look.   
"In truth, only half of it is. The rest is milk."  
Sango squinted an eye, confused.  
"Is that it?"  
"Of course not. People primarily stir in sugar, correct?"  
She nodded.  
Kagome cupper her hand around Sango's ear in whispered.  
"I used maple syrup."  
Sango nodded her head in understanding as she took another sip. Wonderful.  
"Now, try this."  
She was handed another cup, and she brought it to her lips. Its taste was slightly sweeter, and was cold.   
"What's the difference? All you did was add more syrup and used cold milk, am I right?"  
Kagome shook a finger.  
"No. I mixed in instant coffee with the cold milk, instead of the actual brewed coffee."  
She was quite surprised. Kagome was quite intelligent in the way of cooking.  
  
The girls shared the rest of the contents in the pot as the sun rose higher.  
  
  
***  
  
Miroku felt hair tickling his cheek. He brushed it away with his fingers. Seconds later, he felt that tickling sensation again, this time on his nose. He breathed deep and irritably waved it away. When he felt it a third time, he slowly opened his eyes.   
"Come on Miroku, it's 9:00. Get up."  
Hovering over him was Sango, looking down at him with what appeared to be a kitty toy.  
"Mmm...Sango...?"  
He felt her hands grasp him by the shoulders, and he was slowly forced to sit up in his futon. He drowsily stared at her as she tapped his cheeks. She tried lifting him.  
"Urrgh, come ON Miroku! Get yourself-AGH!"  
He suddenly fell forward, she found herself awkwardly hugging him as he soundly slept with his head resting on her shoulder. She blushed, but frowned.  
'Keh, at least he's not-'  
She paused in her thoughts, and she abruptly stood up, leaving Miroku to flop sideways on the floor.  
'-at second thought, who knows what his hands are doing...might as well be safe while in the same room with HIM...'  
  
But she couldn't just leave him there and delay the construction. So with much effort, she half-piggy backed him, with him leaning on her back while she clutched both of his arms with all the strength she could muster down the hall.  
  
***  
  
"Ohayou, Inuyasha."  
Kagome gently flicked his bangs out of his face as she sat down beside his sleeping figure. He muttered in his sleep. She began tickling his ears.  
"Inuyasha~"  
He turned so he was lying on his back and slowly opened his golden eyes.  
"*mumble grumble*"  
"What?"  
She leaned closer so she could hear him. She finally made out the words 'My throat hurts' after a long series of raspy noises.  
"You're sick? Where's that stuff, I know I have it in here somewhere..."  
She shuffled over to the closet and pulled out a wooden box. She pulled out a bottle and a spoon, reading the label as she came back near his futon.  
"I think you'll be fine after some of this, it's pretty effective."  
She poured some into the spoon as he sat up, bringing his hand to his mouth to cover his coughing. Kagome put a hand behind his back and nudged closer with the spoon.  
"Open up, chickling."  
He glared at liquid. He looked back at the girl, his look merely saying 'What-are-you-going-to-do,-feed-me-cat-pee?' She returned his cold look and brought the spoon closer to his mouth. He shook his head and turned away. Kagome could only take so much patience. With her free hand, she grabbed hold of his chin roughly, and forced his head towards her, giving her a seconds worth of chance to shove the spoon into his protesting mouth. She covered his mouth with both hands, with the spoon still protruding out of it. He squirmed under her grip on his chin.   
"GEEZE, WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO, DUCT-TAPE YOUR MOUTH?!"  
Right then, Sango came to stand in the doorway with Miroku limply drooping over her back. She gave the both of them weird looks, as did they to her.  
"Uh...am I--or rather, WE interrupting something?"  
Miroku looked up and blankly watched them, Kagome shaking her head whereas Inuyasha was nodding his head vigorously. Kagome's hand didn't leave his mouth despite his actions. Sango gave them a wary smile and shuffled over to the stairs, deciding it to be best to leave the two alone for a bit. Kagome fixed her gaze onto Inuyasha then, her frown not leaving her face.  
"You done?"  
He nodded with glaring eyes. She slowly lifted her hands from his lips, and before she knew it, Inuyasha was jerking the spoon out of his mouth and splurging the medicine at her like a fountain statue.  
"AAAARGH, INUYASHA~!!"  
He gagged, coughed, wheezed, hacked, you name it. He rolled onto his back and groaned at the liquid's aftertaste. Furious, she pulled the cap off the bottle, and poured it into her spoon a second time. He stared at her in horror as she drove it into her own mouth. She suddenly lunged at him, pinning him to the floor with her entire weight.   
  
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-MMMMF~!!!"  
  
Miroku didn't bother looking up from his head on the kitchen table. Sango simply eyed the staircase strangely and shrugged, proceeding to make Miroku's coffee.  
  
Inuyasha struggled. He beat his hands and legs on the futon, with Kagome forcefully giving back every last drop of medicine from her mouth. With that done, she sat on him, finally pulling her mouth away from his and reaching out to his desk for the roll of duct tape. One hand covered his mouth as the other ripped off a piece from the tough material, using her sharp teeth to tear it off. And with a split second's notice, she whapped the tape onto his mouth. With both hands she held his arms down, preventing his fingers from reaching the tape.   
"NOW!! SWALLOW!!"  
He shut his eyes tightly, and she saw his throat take in the liquid. She breathed, wiping her mouth with her wrist as she looked down at Inuyasha's half-dead form. Inside, she felt like throwing up. She stood up, staring down at her ruined PJs. Luckily, they were the same thing at Sango's, just that hers were navy blue, so the medicine wasn't exactly noticeable. She stuck her tongue out in disgust.  
"THIS is why you REALLY ought to call me MOTHER!"  
Wearily, she saw his hands remove the tape to breathe. He sat up, looking at her groggily. He groaned, and fell back onto his pillow.  
"I can't believe you actually did-"  
"Did what?"  
Sango poked her head in with a mug of coffee. She handed it to Inuyasha as she stared at Kagome and her stained PJs. Her friend just shook her head and waved away the subject.  
"He didn't want to drink his medicine. Let me go change...and gag..."  
She stared at Kagome in shock as she went inside her room and shut the door. Sango looked back at Inuyasha, sipping his coffee.  
"The things Kagome-chan does for you, Inuyasha..."  
He frowned at her from over the rim of his mug. Miroku walked in.  
"I just saw Kagome-sama looking pretty soaked. What was the ordeal up here?"  
Sango threw up her hands as she headed for her room as well.   
"He didn't want to drink his medicine, Miroku."  
He stared at her blankly, not comprehending anything. She sighed and mouthed out the words 'mouth-to-mouth treatment'. He gave her another blank look as she gave up and closed the door of her room behind her to change. Right then, he got it.  
"Oooooooh, I see..."  
He paused, still standing in the doorway to Inuyasha's room. He suddenly spun around and looked at Inuyasha.  
"She DID it? She really DID it?!"  
He just got irritable wave of a hand, motioning him to go away. Miroku folded his arms.  
"Were you being bad, Inuyasha? Were you being bad to mother?"  
"Keh."  
Miroku cocked his head in thought.  
"Wait a sec, or did you ASK her to-"  
"NO!!!!"  
  
  
***  
  
  
So after much gargling and tooth brushing in the bathroom, Kagome threw her PJs in the washer and suited herself with a light blue tank top, and a pair of cargo pants. Sango had her slightly baggy, boyish jeans and a navy tank top. Miroku had his white, collared shirt with his sleeves rolled up to his elbow, along with a pair of shorts, obviously coming down to his knees. A pair of sneakers and a brown belt finished off his outfit. Inuyasha was finally ready to go with a t-shirt and baggy jeans. He wasn't exactly 'Sir Knight of Fashion', if you know what I mean...  
  
So scarfing down a few cream breads and several pitchers of milk, the four of them let the late morning sun beat down on them as they ran, headed for the subway.  
  
  
They all ignored the stares they were getting. A big tall boy with long white hair and a baseball cap was...well...supposedly unique. Obviously, this isn't surprising.  
"Inuyasha, I swear I'm going to drag you home and dye your hair, then..."  
Kagome muttered under her breath. He muttered back.  
"You try it, mom, and I'll be sure you look older with loads of gray hair..."  
"Pfft, I always wanted to know what it would look like if I managed to crop off that hair of yours...give you little pig tails and call you 'Mimi'..."  
He gave her a menacing glare and she sighed.  
"I'm just kidding..."  
  
  
***  
  
  
They met up with Shippo at the café. He and Kirara were staying at Kagome's mom's house, which worked quite well considering that Sota had no close neighbors to play with, and Buyo always needed some company once in a while. He leapt into Kagome's arms as his tail wagged joyfully.  
"You got me worried, Kagome. It was taking you guys awfully long this morning."  
She rubbed his head and walked inside the already four-sixths complete building. The rest followed. She began pointing out the day's planned work.  
"Shippo-chan, I need to have you measure out the rest of the boards, and be sure to be careful with the saw when you're cutting them. Miroku, you go with Inuyasha to begin building the furniture. As for you, Sango-chan, we've got some planning to do. We'll be heading home at 6:00, so let's get moving!"  
  
The group split up, Sango and Kagome going into the 'kitchen' to plan things out. Miroku and Inuyasha followed Shippo outside to begin their building chores.  
"Keh, it's always you being told to 'be careful'..."  
Miroku gave Inuyasha a knudge.  
"Someone's grilling mochi, is he?" (Grilling mochi=term used in Japanese for being jealous)  
Inuyasha returned a growl as Shippo looked haughtily up at him.  
"That's because she cares about ME and not YOU!"  
"Why you little-"  
Shippo grabbed hold of a thin wooden board in both hands, looking on guard. Inuyasha picked one up likewise and glared down at him. Miroku stood to the side, acting as the pacifist.  
"Now now, we're all one big happy brotherhood-"  
"SHUT. UP."  
They said in unison as Shippo swung the board at Inuyasha, with the hanyou dodging out of the way and swiping it back. The battle was heated, but neither of them were going anywhere with all the dodges.  
"...You puny, irritating... chop off that rotten caramel-cotton-candy moth ball stuck to your butt you disrespectful twit!!!"  
"I wouldn't talk you fat, bulky, drooping six-pack old hag!!"  
"You call me a woman and I'll call you an 'it'!!"  
"You wouldn't DARE, you so-called chickling!!"  
Miroku didn't really have the space to kinda sneak in his words of peace. Ah, well, as long as they didn't kill each other...literally.  
  
CRASH.  
  
Miroku turned around in time to see an entire tray of clay vases, in the process of being designed to decorate the café, go flying off the shelves and crashing into the stone walls behind them, showering down bits and bites of dried, hard clay. Shippo and Inuyasha stood frozen with their boards still upraised.  
  
"SHIT~!!!!!!!"  
  
  
Sango looked up from her work.  
"Did you hear something?"  
Kagome looked around.  
"No."  
  
  
  
  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
TO BE CONTINUED... 


	4. Trouble Equals Understatement

Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi is the owner of Inuyasha and all of its characters.  
  
A/N: Are you enjoying the fic, everybody? Are you? Then give me a shout with a review!! -_^  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
Rising With the Sweetness  
  
Chapter 4: Trouble Equals Understatement  
"SHIT!!!!!"  
*pause*  
"Inuyasha...now of all times...you ought to 'bleeep' yourself more often..."  
"Miroku, shut your *bleep* mouth..."  
"Thank you."  
Shippo looked like he was on the verge of tears. He kept frantically rubbing at his eyes as if there was something in his eyes. His tail began to quiver. He finally rounded it off with a bawl.  
"KAGOME'S GONNA KILL MEE~!!!!"  
Inuyasha was already desperately shoving all the pieces of pottery beneath the bushes nearby. Miroku eyed the situation warily.  
"They're hopeless..."  
Right then, he heard the voices of the girls coming closer.   
'Eh...might as well give 'em something to owe me for...'  
He began picking up the pieces around his feet. And as he bent down to pick up another one, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning his head, he was eye to eye with Sango.  
"Houshi-sama, what are you doing?"  
He hesitated. What WAS he doing?   
"I-I...I-I-I..."  
She looked at him expectantly. What did HE do wrong? This was Inuyasha and Shippo's fault in the first place...that's IT!!   
"...I-Inuyasha broke my ceramic f-female model!! And I worked so HARD! It was so intricate and everything and...I-I could have sworn the pelvis went flying this way-"  
Miroku pointed out towards the bushes. Behind him, he could feel Inuyasha's arms flailing in signal as 'NO', being that the rest of the pieces were in that direction. Miroku averted his finger towards the building instead.  
"I-I mean, the LEG must have gone THAT way! O-of course, the LEG is MUCH more important than the PELVIS, now isn't it Inuyasha? Just with all the THIGH and...and..."  
Again, he felt a 'NO' signal from the hanyou. Sango was starting to drill magma-hot death looks straight into his skull. Looking closely, Miroku saw that Inuyasha had hidden more pieces right beside the door behind the drying rack. Again, this time the finger pointed to his right.  
"Oh, but...but of course I could have SWORN I saw the bosom-I MEAN, KNEE CAP go-"  
Of course, Miroku didn't have to explain any further. He himself went flying in that direction as Sango gave him a direct homerun across the face. The girls managed to get distracted temporarily and ran away after him. Inuyasha muttered a secret thanks to the houshi as he began gathering up the pieces in a bag. Shippo came out of the bushes after him. But he found himself not going anywhere as someone grabbed hold of his tail. He turned around...  
Kagome was smiling down at him.  
  
"IYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
He suddenly ran for it, and grabbed onto Inuyasha's pant leg as tears began pouring out all over again. Kagome stared back, dazed and rather surprised.  
"S-Shippo-chan...?"  
She looked at Inuyasha quizzically, and he gave a nervous shrug.  
"What's wrong with Shippo-chan?"  
"What do you mean?"  
She brought her hand to her chin.  
"Sango-chan and I heard someone talking about me killing someone...or-"  
"HE MEANT 'KISS'."  
*pause*  
"What?"  
"I-I mean...yea, he meant 'KISS'...of course why would ANYONE want to KILL dear, sweet, loveable little Shippo-CHAN here..."  
Inuyasha slightly kicked at Shippo, and the little youkai went falling backwards with a little yelp. Kagome narrowed her eyes.  
"Well...perhaps because that person might have wanted to kill YOU?"  
Kagome was starting to get dubious as Inuyasha began to stutter.  
"I-I, I-I mean, was telling, him, or, rather, h-he was saying that I-I...was...urrr..."  
"Was going to be kissed by me?"  
"YES!"  
"So wait, YOU said that?" Kagome pointed at Inuyasha suspiciously.  
"YES, I MEAN, NO! Rather, HE-" Inuyasha pointed to Shippo in a lame excuse.  
Kagome began shaking her head.  
"Wait, WHO said they were gonna be kissed by ME?"  
In unison, the two demons pointed to each other.  
"HIM."  
Inuyasha glared, wide-eyed at the little twit beside him.  
"I DIDN'T SAY SUCH TRASH, YOU LITTLE TWIT!!"  
Shippo looked horror stricken.  
"Wait, what was the question?! IT WAS ALL HIS FAULT!!"  
"YOU STARTED IT!!"  
Kagome felt a migraine coming on.  
"Wait, WHAT was WHO'S fault?!"  
"NOTHING!!"  
Both said in unison, yet again. That apparently wasn't very convincing, according to Kagome's expression... They both began to fumble.  
"INUYASHA WAS HAVING IMMATURE THOUGHTS!!"  
Shippo pointed an accusing finger at the man next to him. Sooner or later he felt a magma-hot aura coming from the hanyou.  
"WHAT?!!" Inuyasha yelled.  
"HE WAS GRILLING MOCHI~!!!"  
"I WAS NOT!!! FOR YOUR INFORMATION, I PERSONALLY DO NOT CARE!!"  
Inuyasha retorted. Okay, so things were getting a tad confusing. Fine, so neither Inuyasha NOR Shippo had any idea what the topic of this faked argument was, because both appeared to be thinking about two different concepts...but at least they were inching Kagome away from the secret broken vases... But unfortunately poor Kagome was too mind boggled about tying in kissing, someone's fault of some unknown bad doing, and grilling mochi having to be a immature thought had anything to do with each other.  
She rubbed her temples with her fingertips.  
"I'm going to have a headache...just both of you shut up and get to work..."  
Fortunately, the men were spared, but obviously it wasn't going to last for long. Kagome and Sango had been planning to paint the vases that day, and it was fated that the guys were in for LOTS of trouble... They decided to gather in a huddle to plan out a routine.  
"Ok, Miroku, somehow lure Sango over into the storage, and KEEP HER IN THERE. I'll deal with Kagome, and Shippo, you'll have to start gathering up the pieces and start piecing them together..."  
Shippo threw Inuyasha a glare from the side of his eyes.  
"If you hurt Kagome, I'll make sure she REALLY kisses you, BIG TIME."  
"We'll just see about that..."  
***  
"Sango! Sango!"  
Miroku went around calling her name as he made his way through the café.   
"Sang-OOF!"  
Something suddenly came swinging down from the ceiling, taking him aback a second too late as it collided with his hard skull. He went falling backwards and into a pile of sawdust on the cement floor, landing with a hard bang. He rubbed his head painfully as he looked up, his eyes squinting. Sango was hanging from the ceiling by her legs, a protective mask covering her face as she held a drill in her gloved hands. She dropped the drill, removing her gloves as she raised the mask from her face.  
"You called me?"  
"Ow-yes."  
"What?"  
He stumbled to his feet and pulled Sango from the ceiling, consequently holding her princess style as she gave a yelp.  
"Whoo, a bit light headed here..."  
The blood from her face drained itself as she looked up at him.  
"And? What do you want?"  
"I want you to help me."  
She waited expectantly for a few seconds, then sighed.  
"With...?"  
Amusingly, he didn't seem to be able to reply with an answer. He finally came up with one.  
"I lost something in the storage."  
"Did you? What are you missing?"  
"Ummm...."  
She lowered herself from his hold and grabbed hold of his sleeve and began dragging him out the door as she pulled off her gloves with her teeth.  
"Whatever. Let's go."  
  
They entered the dark storage hut, with Miroku in the lead and Sango following him. He finally stopped towards the far back end of the hut, bringing a hand to his chin as he cocked his head.  
"Hmmm...I suddenly lost my train of thought. What was I looking for again?"  
Sango sighed as a few seconds of silence followed. She touched his arm from behind.  
"Well, if you don't need anything for now, I guess I'll be going..."  
She turned around to leave when he stopped her a second time.  
"Oooh, wait wait wait!! That's right, I was looking for my...my...my-"  
"Ceramic exceedingly-superb-and-intricate-full of detailed female model-"  
"YES! Of COURSE, who could ever...wait a minute..."  
"-that you just happened to break not more than ten minutes ago?"  
Sango finished her sentence with a dubious look. He rapidly began shaking his head.  
"I mean, that's NOT what I was...well..."  
"You're not going to tell me the *important* part of the female body went flying this way and you're desperately trying to find it now, are you?"  
"Oh, no no no, of COURSE not! What I meant to say was that I was looking for my-"  
"Subscription order form to that latest lingerie models magazine?"  
"Correct yet again, dearest! But...wait a second, how do YOU know about that?"  
Sango rolled her eyes.  
"You think anyone would notice all of Kagome-chan's magazines being imported over to YOUR CLOSET?"  
Miroku suddenly looked at her curiously.  
"Those were Kagome-sama's magazines?"  
Sango nodded as he put a hand to his mouth in deep thought.  
"I wonder if she has that magenta set with the pink frills..."  
"MIROKU!!!"  
"I-I MEAN...WELL...well Sango, why would YOU know what's in my closet-"  
Sango holds up a mini photo album completely filled with pictures of herself, whereas Miroku looks on warily.  
"Urrrrr..."  
"I found it while vacuuming."  
"Vacuuming in MY CLOSET?"  
"Who KNOWS what sorta bacteria is inside there, Miroku?! Besides, it was quite informative..."  
Miroku's face paled.  
"What did you-"  
"Well, I have right here your plumeria-scented leg shaving cream-"  
"MY, WHY WASTE SUCH A LOVELY DAY IN THE STORAGE, EH? OH LOOK, THE FIRST ROBIN OF SPRING!"  
Miroku suddenly ran past Sango as she reached behind to her pocket. She turned around and hollered at the door.  
"IT'S SUMMER YOU RETARD!!"  
SLAM!  
Sango stared at the door in shock. It closed. CLOSED?! She rammed herself into it, but it was to no avail.  
"MIROKU, LET ME OUT!!! I KNOW YOU'RE THERE!!"  
*silence*  
"Miroku, I'm warning you..."  
*silence*  
  
Right then, she heard it. It was faint, but she heard EVERY. SINGLE. SYLLABLE. Which just happened to be:  
"Heeheeheehee......."  
  
"@#$%^&#@%!!!!!!"  
***  
"KAGOME!"  
Kagome flinched while doing her tedious job of using a ruler to make intricate designs she planned to paint along the edges of the walls. She dropped the pencil, and the ruler moved, causing her to look behind irritably at Inuyasha. Her voice was low and menacing.  
"What?"  
He shuddered at her tone of voice, but held on to his 'act'.  
"I think I lost the phone..."  
She suddenly paled.  
"The phone? The cordless one?! The CELL phone?!!"  
He nodded...and gulped. She suddenly stood up and gripped him by the shoulders.  
"WHERE? HOW? HOW COULD YOU?!!"  
Her furiousity was really getting to him. He lowered his head.  
"Over by the portable toilet stall..."  
Kagome suddenly went crashing out the door and frantically rushed outside. Inuyasha snickered. In truth, he'd hidden it, obviously. And he knew how much she cared about that phone...being that she'd been wanting one for years. She suddenly came bombarding back in, and she snatched the collar of his shirt and pulled him outside as he stumbled after her.  
"K-KAGOME, CAN'T...BREATHE..."  
She led him directly in front of the stall and released him. She looked down at him sternly as he bent over to gasp.  
"Alright, where is it?"  
He pointed to the green box before them. She gaped.  
"In THERE?"  
"Uh...yea..."  
She kicked open the door and looked down at the toilet in disgust.  
"Okay...now what?"  
Inuyasha scratched his head. He could have SWORN he had this story planned...now what was it? Shoot...he'd forgotten. He looked around inside the stall to look for a small area where a phone could fit, but there was none. He didn't have much of a choice but to point down into...  
"DOWN THE TOILET?!"  
Kagome screamed at him as he winced at her outburst. He seemed to shrink in size as she hovered over him.  
"HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?!" she demanded. He swallowed.  
"I-I saw a cockroach inside the toilet....."  
"And you killed it..."  
"Yes..."  
"WITH THE PHONE?!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
He nodded, trying his best to look innocent.  
"WHAT DID YOU DO, THROW IT AT THE THING?!"  
"I-I had no choice..."  
"HAD NO CHOICE?! LOOK AT THIS."  
She held up the toilet plunger.  
"THIS IS A TOILET PLUNGER. SEE THE THINGS YOU CAN DO WITH IT-"  
She raised it above her head, and it made him cower. Kagome suddenly paused and sighed as she lowered the plunger.  
"WHY did you have the phone in the toilet stall in the FIRST PLACE?!"  
He bit his lower lip.  
"I was talking with someone."  
"Inside the toilet..."  
"Yes..."  
"With WHO? You don't know any phone numbers..."  
He thought for a second.  
"Your grandpa."  
She stared.  
"He called?"  
"Yes."  
"And you were in the toilet?"  
"I HAD TO GO!!"  
"THAT badly?!"  
"BADLY!!"  
"So grandpa called, you had to go badly, so you ran into the toilet stall when you saw a cockroach crawling around the toilet bowl, and you used it to throw it at it?"  
He nodded. To him it reasonable enough...sort of... And yet...  
"Iiiiiinnnnuuuuuuuyaaaaaassssshaaaaaaa......"  
He could see the flames of utter hell making their way up behind her. She even smelled of smoke. He began to stumble backwards, and he stepped outside the stall from the crammed space. And to his complete horror, she flared, her hair standing two feet high as her hand reached back for the toilet plunger. Right then, he did it.   
  
SLAM!!!!!  
  
He slammed the door shut.  
He sighed with relief for the moment, and wiped his brow. He ignored the horrible remarks being shouted from the other side of the door, and he whistled as he turned...when he suddenly felt a great weight clutching his leg. He looked down, only to see that he had slammed the toilet stall door shut...on his pant leg.  
"Ooooooooooh crap......"  
He clutched his pants with both hands and gave a sharp jerk. It only pulled the stall closer to him. He did it again, only for the action to be repeated.  
"Shoot shoot shoot shoot shoot~!!!!"  
He desperately tried to RUN from the stall. Instead, it stubbornly bit down on his pants and it followed him around on the streets. From inside, he could hear Kagome's shrieks protruding from the walls.  
"IYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"  
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!"  
  
Miroku was just walking out of his ordeal, sighing with relief that he had gotten all of it over with. He smiled to himself at his cleverness and wiped his brow. Yet as he raised his head, he turned to the right to see Inuyasha, running back and forth along the street screaming at the top of his lungs...with the great big portable toilet stall close at his heels. The ex-monk tsked at the sight.  
"I knew it...that one sucker of a toilet is just simply cursed..."  
He jogged away to where Shippo was inside, already beginning to piece together the vases.  
  
Meanwhile, Inuyasha finally gave up. He faced the stall bravely as he frowned, the door bulging out every time Kagome pounded on it.  
"DAMN YOU INUYASHA, LET ME OUT!!!"  
Again, he clutched his pants with both hands, and with one last sharp heave, it was released...with a price. He watched in horror as the green stall tipped...sideways...and onto the hard cement street.  
  
".........."  
"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!"  
  
And without bothering to stop and listen to Kagome's furious screams, he turned around, and ran inside the café.  
  
"MIROKU!! SHIPPO!! ARE YOU DONE YET?!!"  
The two of them looked up desperately at the hanyou.  
"We just finished ONE!!"  
"ONE?!!"  
"Yes, ONE!!"  
"How many are there?"  
"SEVEN!!"  
Inuyasha looked crestfallen. He snatched up a stool and sat beside them, hovering over the pieces and aimlessly trying to piece them together.  
"Damn these stupid...pieces..."  
  
It was then, that the three men heard enormous thumps proceeding from the back yard, and the font yard. Footsteps followed after that, and a loud bang made them face their horror.  
  
Kagome and Sango stood, sweaty and weary...and enraged...  
  
Sango's hands were red from pounding on the storage door, with her shoes close to having holes from all the kicking. Kagome had a splatter of toilet water soaking her jeans, with a small tear on her left sleeve of her t-shirt. Nothing could stop either of them now...  
"You three...are DEAD."  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
TO BE CONTINUED...  
  
Did you like it? Hope you drop me a review!! -_^  
~Momori^^ 


	5. Solutions

Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi is the owner of Inuyasha and all of its characters.  
  
A/N: Wheeee, very exciting very exciting!! ^^ Thanks for all the reviews and support, everyone! Here it is, what are the girls' death wishes for the three men...?  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Rising With the Sweetness  
  
Chapter 5: Solutions  
  
"I can't believe it. I just DON'T UNDERSTAND..."  
"Neither can I, how stupid could men get?"  
Sango and Kagome sat face to face with all three criminals, their eyes looking up at their faces with bowed heads guiltily. Miroku, however, was a tad braver then the rest.  
"Urrr...my ladyships, might I be excused from this-"  
He received a glower from Sango, but he proceeded with a gulp.  
"To tell you the truth, I'm not even PART of this mess. You see, Inuyasha and Shippo got in a fight and-"  
Inuyasha let his arm automatically swing for Miroku's head, and indeed, the ex-monk went flying towards the wall and smash into it...or perhaps THROUGH it...  
"Whoop, there goes another wall...thanks for making life easier, Miroku." Inuyasha muttered.  
"I'M INNOCENT, REALLY!!'  
Miroku let his holler ring through the hole he made.   
"Shut up if you don't want your precious plumeria shaving cream to spill."  
Like a charm, Miroku's voice went silent at Sango's comment. Kagome gave her a sideways look.  
"I beg your pardon?"  
"Nevermind."  
Kagome folded her arms and sighed.  
"Alright you two, don't even bother telling me how this happened. For now, we need to think of a penalty."  
Sango nodded in agreement, and Shippo whimpered. Right then, Kagome raised a finger and gave a small wink.  
"I have an idea."  
Sango looked at her sideways.  
"What?"  
Kagome grinned and went away, only to come back with a cart full of clay. She pointed to the clay in a demanding manner.  
"Alright men, time to use some artistic sense and remake those vases!"  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
"What's that Inuyasha, a camel?"  
Inuyasha glared at Shippo from the corner of his eye.  
"You should talk. What's yours, a demented rabbit?"  
Shippo frowned.  
"It's a vase."  
"Well then, that makes MINE a vase too now, doesn't it?"  
Shippo poked Inuyasha's mound of clay in his claws.  
"You have it wrong! What's the lump on the side for?"  
He huffed.  
"It's gonna be a handle."  
Miroku, alongside, quietly worked on his piece of art under the lamp light. He watched the fight from the corner of his eye.  
Inuyasha snickered at Shippo's progress.  
"Heh, what's with the antennae?"  
Shippo jabbed out a paw in attempt to scratch him, then bared his little fangs.  
"IT'S CALLED ART!!"  
Inuyasha pointed a finger at the little kitsune and taunted him.  
"Hah! It looks like YOU!"  
Shippo bit his lip, then furiously began clawing at his piece of clay. Its conclusion turned out to what appeared to be...  
"A puma eating a platypus?"  
Both Miroku and Inuyasha said in unison. Miroku wished he'd kept his mouth shut.  
"NO!!!"  
Shippo growled in anger as he fumed.  
"THIS," he pointed at his sculpture, then at Inuyasha. "IS YOU!"  
Inuyasha stared at it blankly, and then poked it with his index finger.  
"And...what's that thing in my eyeball?"  
"That's your mouth."  
"My mouth is in my eyeball?"  
"No, that 'EYEBALL' happens to be your MOUTH."  
Inuyasha scratched his head in confusion.  
"So wait, I'm eating my own eyeball?"  
"NO!!!! Idiot, you're clawing at your own leg."  
Inuyasha picked up the sculpture and examined it carefully.  
"Why, does that taste good?"  
"OF COURSE NOT!! IT'S A SIGN OF STUPIDITY!!"  
Right then, the hanyou snickered.  
"You've TRIED it, haven't you?"  
Shippo's head looked liked like a ripe tomato just then. He snatched away his clay figure from Inuyasha's claws as he wildly jumped up from his stool.  
"NO!! NO I HAVEN'T!!!!!!"  
Shippo reached for more clay, then molded it into another figure, shoving it towards Miroku when he finished.  
"And THAT, is YOU!!"  
Miroku looked at it, and made the mistake of saying his thoughts out loud.  
"Why...am I rubbing a cow's abdomen?"  
He HEARD a vein pop in Shippo's head.  
"That's not a COW, that's a WOMAN!!!!!"  
"So...I'm rubbing a WOMAN's abdomen...for what?"  
The little guy couldn't take it anymore. He took the advantage of Inuyasha's laughing figure to throw the disfigured mound of clay, straight for his open mouth.  
"HAHAHAHAHA-OOMMMFF~!!!!"  
WHAM!  
Inuyasha went falling to the floor, stool and all, as the foul tasting glob entered his mouth. He spat it out in disgust.  
"Why you little son of a RAT!!"  
The hanyou grabbed the clay he spat out, and piece by piece began chucking in the demon's direction. Shippo scampered about screeching curses as he dodged.  
"WHAT A LOUSY SHOT, CAN'T YOU DO ANY BETTER?! EVEN A SLOTH WOULD LAUGH AT THE LIKES OF YOU, HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!"  
Miroku sat in the corner of the room, his arms folded and blankly watching the scene before him. His eyes averted to the door as it creaked open, and revealed Kagome.  
"What's all the-"  
Right then a spit-covered piece of clay came charging at her head, and landed smack dab on her forehead.   
  
The world went silent.   
  
She slowly peeled it off.   
  
Inuyasha stood motionless across the room from her, in his hand the remaining of the clay glob. He watched in horror as her eyes narrowed down to slits, then blazed hell red behind her pupils.  
"K-Kagome..."  
She gripped the clay in her hand, and in a blink her arm was swung backwards, her leg kicking up as she thrust her hand forward, and released the clay.   
  
No one saw it.   
  
But they DID see Inuyasha's head snap backwards, then his whole body get thrust to the floor with a big WHAM. They gaped as the hanyou raised his head.  
  
They saw the piece of clay, deeply lodged into Inuyasha's right nostril as he snorted repeatedly.   
"Unreal..." Miroku whispered.   
Kagome let her eyes scan the area. Clay pieces EVERYWHERE.  
"What...may I ask, happened here?"  
Shippo was too frightened to answer. He released a whimper and set himself cowering behind his stool. Miroku willingly responded.  
"There was a slight dispute, Kagome-sama. I myself ask forgiveness for these two scoundrels."  
She thought for a minute, amid the golden silence...and not to mention Inuyasha's pleasant snorting coming from the corner of the room. She turned on her heel to face the hanyou.  
"CHICKLING."  
The pleasant noises stopped abruptly as he froze with his claw up his nose, while Shippo giggled on the other side of the room. Kagome hid her amused expression.  
"Go fetch the broom and that little piece of paper-thin metal. Be sure to scrape off all that clay off the walls...not to mention the ceiling, too."  
The hanyou grumbled, then trudged out the door. Kagome then pointed to Shippo and wagged a finger at him.  
"Alright young man, for you, I'm going to have you return home early today and have my mom send you straight to bed."  
The little kitsune looked devastated.  
"Eeeeeeeeeh?!"  
She took out her cell phone and tapped it.  
"I'm going to call her right now. She take this 500 yen and get yourself a ticket on the subway to get home, you understand?"  
He nodded, then caught the coin Kagome tossed and he scampered out the door, waving.  
"Bai!"  
She smiled and saw him out the door.  
"Take care, Shippo-chan!"  
She finally wiped her brow with her wrist and turned to Miroku.  
"Let's see...looks like I'm going to have to finish off these vases, in that case. Miroku-sama, I mean, Miroku could you accompany Sango-chan to the supermarket before we go home today? I'm going to be going back to the house with Inuyasha so I can look up a few things, and I don't think she can handle all those shopping bags to buy food for all four of us."  
He smiled and nodded before standing.  
"It'll be my pleasure, Kagome-sama."  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
"Are you sure it was these, Miroku-sama?"  
Sango held up a bag of chips as they walked down the isle. Miroku brought a hand to his chin and thought.  
"I'm quite certain, actually, since I remember Inuyasha nearly took off his own tongue with the sharp edge of a tape dispenser after merely 'tasting' those new Tabasco sauce ones..."  
Sango shrugged as she read the label.  
"Hmm...must have missed that one. Besides the time when Inuyasha went outside to stick his tongue in the snow after Kagome-chan mistook the salt for the sugar and added it to the extra-hot curry, I don't remember such an event."  
Miroku sweated as he smiled warily.  
"These things happen a lot in our household, don't they?"  
She sighed as she tossed the bag into the cart and rolled it down to the cash registers.  
  
Later, each of them held two shopping bags as they made their way up the steep slopes heading for home. Sango suddenly felt a crack in the concrete beneath her foot, and she went tumbling sideways as her bags went falling to the ground.   
"Sango!"  
Miroku hurried to her side, dropping his own bags. She rubbed her ankle as she gritted her teeth.  
"Urgh, looks like I twisted it."  
He looked down at her foot for a second, then back up the slope. He suddenly stood and faced his back to her, bending his knees slightly as she looked up at him curiously.  
"Miroku?"  
"Come on, Sango. I'll carry you up."  
Sango blushed immensely as she tried to stand.  
"No, no that's ok. I think I'll manag-"  
She fell face forward onto his back, and he placed his hands right beneath her knees and hoisted her up. She slightly tightened her hold around his shoulders as she felt herself being lifted.  
"You alright? All good?"  
She nodded, and he bent over to gather up their bags and began making his way up the hill. She could feel the muscles along his back working as he moved, and his unyielding arms never loosened their grasp on her legs. She soon rested her cheek against him, her skin feeling the soothing, comfortable cotton material of his shirt.  
"Arigatou, Miroku." (arigatou=thanks)  
She sensed a smile from him.  
"Anytime, Sango."  
She didn't realize that she began to doze as his warmth contrasted with the chilly night air as they walked, the moon beginning to rise high above them.  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
That night, while it was Miroku's turn to cook dinner, the remaining three in the household were busy at work painting the vases.  
"I'm surprised these dried so fast. What color do you want this one to be?"  
Sango held one of them up as Kagome thought.  
"I'm thinking all of them should be bright red, with maroon designs on them."  
"How about lilies?"  
Surprised, Kagome looked at Inuyasha who was already painting the vase in red.  
"Lilies?"  
"A tiny lily pattern along the edges in maroon."  
She thought about it, then secretly told herself that she loved the idea.  
"That's great. We'll go with that, then."  
Miroku poked his head in the doorway right then, still wearing his pink frilly cooking apron and an oven mitt.  
"Dinner's ready!"  
The three of them laughed at Miroku's outfit, and went to join him at the kitchen table to start dinner.  
  
Some hours later, Miroku and Sango went off to bed, and Kagome helped herself to the shower. Feeling refreshed, she slipped on her pajamas and placed a towel around her shoulders. As she walked through the hallway, she noticed the door to Inuyasha's room was open, but with no light on.   
"That's funny...he never sleeps with his door open..."  
She peeked inside the room, only to see that it was empty.   
"Inuyasha?"  
She padded down the stairs and looked around, and saw light coming from a small opening to the living room door. She slowly opened it, and she saw Inuyasha hunched over the table, motionless with his head resting against his arms. In one hand he held a brush, still dripping wet with wine-colored paint. In front of him stood 6 completed vases, the red paint showing brightly with fully blossomed lilies along the bottom, all maroon. Each one of them was breathtaking. The last one was still held in his left hand, half way done with the pattern. She bent over to look at him, and saw his eyelids closed and his ears slightly drooping. His slow, rhythmic breathing showed that he was asleep. Kagome looked to the clock. 11:30.   
  
She smiled down at him, and parted his bangs across his forehead.   
"Poor thing...he must have felt really bad about everything that happened today."  
Kagome immediately ran up to his room and pulled off the quilt from Inuyasha's bed, then ran back down again and draped it over his shoulders. After looking at him for some time, she couldn't resist bending down to brush her lips against his eyelids, each one tenderly as his lashes tickled her. Sighing, she withdrew and went the door, switching off the light as she looked back at the sleeping figure.  
  
"Oyasumi, Inuyasha." (oyasumi=good night)  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
TO BE CONTINUED...  
  
Did you like it? Hope you drop me a review! ^__^ 


	6. For You I Will

Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi is the owner of Inuyasha and all of its characters.  
  
A/N: Hiii! Sorry for the late update...anyway, enjoy! Happy reading!!  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Rising With the Sweetness  
  
Chapter 6: For You I Will  
  
"Inuyasha. Inuyasha!"  
"Mmmrrrrrffff?"  
Inuyasha woke to someone shaking him. He realized he had fallen asleep on the living room coffee table. Well, the really sucky cheap one, and was staring at his completed vases.   
"Ka-gome~?"  
He asked sleepily. The last thing he remembered was something soft brushing against his eyelids.  
"Get up, silly. Today's Sunday."  
"So? Don't we get a break?"  
Inuyasha stretched as he yawned.  
"Yea, but I can't find Kagome anywhere."  
His ears perked up at the comment.  
"What?!"  
He bounded out of his chair, and knocked it over as he dashed out into the kitchen. Sango jumped out of the way and sighed. The coffee maker was on, brewing fresh, and a plate of pastries was set on the table with a napkin covering it. Kagome must have set things up before she left...wherever she was going...  
"Where did she-"  
"We have no clue."  
Miroku stepped inside and scratched his head. Both he and Sango were still in their PJs, and apparently had just woken up.  
"Do you think she went to the café?"  
"But it's Sunday!"  
"Maybe she forgot."  
"But if she did, she would have tackled us all in bed and woken us up to get to work...right?"  
"Oh...right..."  
Inuyasha looked down, and then looked at Sango, puzzled.  
"Sango, what happened to your ice pack? Is you ankle all better?"  
She looked down.  
"Huh? Oh, I totally forgot. I don't know, it feels all better, but...where did my ice pack go?"  
"Oh well, as long as you feel better, I guess it doesn't matter where it went."  
Miroku patted Sango on the shoulder and seated himself at the table.  
"Yea, I guess you're right."  
She set about pouring coffee, and Inuyasha hesitantly sat down, slightly concerned. Miroku seemed to notice.  
"Don't worry, Inuyasha. She'll be back soon."  
He grunted.  
"Oh, she'd better."  
He looked sideways at the calendar, and his eyes widened at the date.  
  
"July 8th...? Then that means..."  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
Kagome hummed as she entered their little café, with the sawdust swept away clean and the furniture progressively increasing in the corner. She set her purse down, and looked out the window. The sky was growing dark, and it was only 11:00 AM. She squinted at the gray clouds approaching.  
"Oh great, looks like I'm going to have a heck of a time getting home. I hope it doesn't rain TOO soon..."  
She walked out through the back door. She hugged herself as the wind came blowing past her forcefully, and she proceeded. She closed the door behind her slowly, and began to search around the trees. Her eyes looked around the ground intently, then she stood back up straight and scratched her head.  
"Where was it...?"  
She heard a creaking sound behind her, and realized that the storage door was open.  
"The wind must have blown it open...gosh, it's chilly..."  
Kagome was about to walk inside the storage, just see if anyone was inside or something. But she hadn't realized the crack that had formed in front of the doorway.  
  
She felt her foot get caught in the knick, and she felt something like a jolt of lightening go searing through her right knee, preceded with a little 'pop'. She found herself on the ground within seconds, her hands clutching at her knee painfully as she lay on her side.  
  
It was so painful she couldn't bring herself to cry out in any sort of way. She held back the tears that were stinging at her eyes, and she looked up as she felt drops dropping all around her.   
  
It was starting to rain.  
  
With aching slowness, she began to crawl her way to the trees, with her hands searching all over the grass around the bushes.  
  
"I-I have to find it...before it gets too wet..."  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
Sango peered into the living room. Inuyasha remained motionless in front of the TV, his chin resting on the palm of his hand as his elbow was propped up on the coffee table. His eyes stood transfixed to the screen, but apparently he wasn't paying any attention.  
"What is he doing?"  
Miroku came up behind her and looked inside.  
"I don't know...I'm guessing that he's worried."  
Miroku sighed and went to the kitchen, pouring himself another cup of coffee as Sango sat down at kitchen table.  
"When it comes to Kagome-sama, he seems restless all the time."  
Sango smiled.  
"He must really care for her."  
  
Inuyasha came walking into the kitchen, with his ears twitching irritably as he pulled open the refrigerator door.  
"What's for lunch?"  
Miroku looked inside the pantry closet.  
"Looks like Kagome-sama bought four packs of instant ramen. For heavens sake, she has everything prepared! The pastries, the coffee, and now lunch? Ramen? Is today something special? Oh well, ramen should do, right? Lucky you, Inuyasha."  
Miroku looked back at the hanyou, and was surprised to see yet another flash of wistful worry go dancing across his face. He nodded hesitantly and slumped down at the table. Sango looked at him from drinking the remainder of her coffee.   
  
He was staring at the calendar, with the same anxious expression on his face.  
  
"Inuyasha? Is there something wrong with the calendar?"  
He snapped out of his trance and waved away her comment.   
  
He sat staring out the window at the blackened sky, the rain outside pouring heavily as Miroku prepared lunch for the four of them...  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
Kagome let her single hand search around the grass in front of her. She had made it to her knees, with all her pressure weighed onto her left. The right still stung with great pain, and she couldn't prevent the tears from falling.   
  
From blurred vision and a gloomy atmosphere, she searched for that single something, so precious that she couldn't just let it go. She raised her head slightly, and a few feet away from her, she saw something, an object, outstanding in comparison to the dreary setting. She crawled three steps forward, slowly, and she reached out to it. She felt the object between her fingertips, and she painfully smiled as she felt her hand remove it off the ground. With great delicacy, she cradled it to her chest. She whispered words of comfort to it as she kneeled there, in the rain.  
  
"I hope you have the power to enlighten his day..."  
  
She pressed a hand against the tree that was in front of her, and she drew her left knee forward. After several minutes, she managed to stand, leaning heavily against the tree, with her hand still holding onto the object.   
  
She slowly made her way to the door, with her hand guiding her as it skimmed against the café wall.   
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
Inuyasha had hardly touched his ramen, whereas Miroku and Sango had already finished theirs. Miroku wiped his mouth with a napkin as he watched the hanyou out of the corner of his eye, who was looking into his bowl, motionless.  
  
"Is the soup too salty, Inuyasha?"  
He shook his head. Miroku leaned back in his chair and brought a toothpick to his mouth.  
"I'm still not good with this 'instant' food business. I can't make it quite as good as Kagome-sama can."  
The ex-monk watched Inuyasha, amused, as he saw him freeze in his position and sigh hopelessly. Sango looked at the clock.  
  
1:30 PM.  
  
"I heard the door opening and closing this morning at around 6:00, but I didn't wake up. I guess that means that she's been gone for about...7 hours..."  
Inuyasha stood from his chair, suddenly, with his eyebrows furrowed, and his eyes determined.  
"I'm going out."  
He was about to go to the door when he felt a hand on his wrist. He looked down at Miroku, looking at him placidly.  
"Inuyasha, she may have gone out on a simple errand, and perhaps it's taking some time. She might find it bothersome if you track her down now. She needs her own space sometimes."  
Inuyasha made a fist with his hand and gritted his teeth inside his closed mouth. He snatched away his hand from Miroku's and quickly ran up the stairs. The two of them heard his door close.  
  
Miroku sighed as he looked at Sango.  
"I hope Kagome isn't in danger..."  
Sango shrugged.  
"I think she can take care of herself. But if she doesn't come back by 5:00, I suggest we go out and find her."  
Miroku brought the dishes to the sink.  
"I'm just curious why she didn't write a note."  
Sango sighed and shook her head.  
  
"I just hope she isn't plotting anything too risky..."  
  
*-.,.-*  
  
But time passed by...  
  
5:00 PM.  
  
And Kagome still wasn't home.  
  
Inuyasha came storming down the stairs, this time in his actual jeans and t-shirt.  
"I am NOT going to stay sitting like some obedient dog in this house! I'm going OUT!!"  
Miroku came running down the hallway after him, pulling on a jacket.  
"Wait, Inuyasha! I'm coming with you!"  
Both men were out the door in minutes.  
  
Sango shouted out after them, but they were already gone. She checked that the stoves were turned off, the lights were off, and she pulled on her own jacket before rushing out and locking the door. She ran off after them, charging through the pouring rain with two umbrellas under her arm.  
  
"Miroku!! Inuyasha!!"  
  
She saw them both halt in their steps.   
"Things will go faster if split up. I'll go ask around the neighbors. Miroku-sama, you go towards town and see around the supermarket and stores and such. Inuyasha, since you're the fastest, you should go check the café."  
"Right!"  
"Got it!"  
She tossed Miroku an umbrella, and he caught it with ease before running off. Sango tried to call Inuyasha and hand him one as well, but he was already gone.  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
Kagome finally made it inside long ago, and was just about ready go head out again, towards home. She'd rested underneath the roof for almost 4 hours now, and her knee was feeling slightly better, but not enough to run or walk without support. She didn't have her cell phone with her, but even if she did, she had no desire to call home for help.   
  
This was strictly important.  
  
She took her up purse in one hand, and the precious object from outside in the other, and she pushed open the door. It was still raining hard, but she didn't bother. With one hand along the concrete walls along the streets, she made her way slowly down the road.   
  
"I've gotta get home...soon..."  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
Inuyasha thundered down the street, where everything was empty since everyone was inside, avoiding the rain. He could hardly see anything in the distance from all the falling drops.  
"Kagome!! Kagome~!!"  
He was panting hard, with his heart beating at an uncontrollable rate as he began to leap in large distances. No one was bound to see anyway, since there was nobody around.   
  
He finally saw the café, with the cherry blossom tree nearby, trying so hard to keep its blossoms to its branches, but were losing them rapidly to the winds. He found the door locked, but he'd remembered to have the key with him. He shoved the key into its place and twisted it, then thrust open the door and dashed inside.  
  
"Kagome!!!"  
  
Silence.  
  
"Kagome?! Kagome?!!"  
  
No one was in sight. Everything was in its proper place, unchanged. There was almost no presence left behind of anyone being here.   
  
That is, until he looked at the ground.  
  
He saw a large spot of wetness soaked into the wooden floor, right in front of the back doorway. He bent down and examined it. It looked as if someone had laid there, soaking wet, then removed himself or herself off the floor and made their way over to the front.   
  
Someone had been here.  
  
"Damn it!!"  
  
He ran back out again, remembering to lock the door, and he went thundering down, yet again the way he came. His hair was soaked, as was all of his clothing. Thanks to his speed, he wasn't as wet as a normal person would be if walking or running in this weather. He suddenly stopped in his steps, seeing something in the distance. It appeared to be a dark shape, leaning against the concrete wall along the side of the street, clinging and sagging against it desperately. It was a person.  
  
"Who-"  
  
Inuyasha didn't bother finishing his sentence. He was already off and running towards her. The person turned around, pain written in her eyes, and her pupils widened at the sight of the hanyou running, dashing towards her.  
  
"I-Inu...yasha..."  
  
"KAGOME~!!!"  
  
He was at her side in seconds, already bending down and cradling her wet, bedraggled figure.  
"Kagome, what on earth did you think you were doing?"  
Almost out of automatic reaction, he was hugging her, fussing over her wet clothing like a mother with her child. Kagome slightly drew away.  
"Inuyasha...wait, be careful..."  
He drew back to give her some space, then looked down to see what she was holding in her hands. For one, there was her purse. And in the other...  
  
In her other hand, she held a single stem of tulip.  
  
It was perfect in all shape, at all angles. And in contrast to the sinister atmosphere of gray rain, it shined radiant red throughout its petals. Kagome had a damp paper towel held at the foot of its step, just to substitute as water for the temporary.  
"Kagome, what is-"  
  
He was shocked at her actions. She was holding it out to him, tenderly placing its stem in his hand as she smiled through the soreness.  
  
"Happy Birthday...Inuyasha."  
  
He couldn't bring himself to say anything. Had she gone...all the way here to fetch this, for him? And the pastries on the table this morning? The ramen packets all ready for them in the pantry for lunch?   
  
All...for him?  
  
"Kagome..."  
  
She was staring up at him, shocked as well. Amongst the rain drops falling in her hand, she felt warmer ones, falling into her palm. They were coming from Inuyasha's eyes.  
  
Inuyasha was crying.  
  
"I-Inuyasha...?"  
  
He held the tulip with a firmer hold, and suddenly wrapped his arms around her tenderly, kneeling in the rain. He called her name over and over, her shirt getting even more soaked with his warm tears.   
  
No one had ever done this for him. Kagome was the first who found out his birthday for him, being that they didn't have a calendar back in his original time. She had calculated everything, and had figured out the approximate date of his birth somehow, for him. And now, she was the first.   
  
The first to recognize the birth of his very existence.  
  
*~FLASHBACK~*  
  
"Inuyasha, when do you think you were born?"  
"Keh, me? How would I know?"  
"You don't know anything?" Kagome asked.  
"Well...all I know is sometime during the summer."  
  
"I'll find out for you, then!"  
Kagome had researched lots, and asked him many questions, until one day...  
  
"Inuyasha, you said you were born during the summer, right?"  
"Yea...why?"  
"I think I have it! July 8th!"  
She exclaimed happily. He'd looked at her with a sideways look.  
"Heh? Is it now? How'd you get that?"  
"It's a long story. No matter, it suits you."  
  
He hesitated.  
  
"Well...thanks, anyway. For figuring it out..."  
"You're welcome."  
  
*~End FLASHBACK~*  
  
"Why...why do you do this for me?"  
She smiled through the rain.  
"Silly. It's my pleasure."  
"Even if you have to go through such...pain?"  
She laughed quietly.  
  
"This injury wasn't intended to happen, Inuyasha. But for you, I will."  
  
"Arigatou, Kagome." (arigatou=thank you)  
  
*-.,.-*  
  
Sango and Miroku greeted the two of them at the front of their door.   
  
They watched as Inuyasha came up the slope, cradling Kagome in his arms as she rested her head against his chest, fast asleep. In his hand, he held a single, blooming red tulip, and he gazed at the girl's face lovingly as they headed home.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
TO BE CONTINUED...  
  
An entirely romance-soaked chapter! Hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! ^^ 


	7. Sudden Approaches

Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi is the owner of Inuyasha and all of its characters.  
  
A/N: Hurrah! I updated!!! Thank you to all those who pressured me to update...or else I would have never gotten past this chapter...hahahaha...thank you so much, reviewers! Happy reading!  
  
PS: Hope you like the new format! I thought it would be easier to follow the conversations, this way. ^__^;;;  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Rising With the Sweetness  
  
Chapter 7: Sudden Approaches  
  
Sango nearly ran into Miroku as she came up the stairs holding a bowl full of ice water, just as he was about to exit the bathroom with a towel.  
  
"Oh, sorry. Gosh I hate these narrow spaces..."  
  
Sango bustled past the ex-monk as he trotted after her.  
  
"Ah well, it just makes things cozier, doesn't it?"  
  
After Inuyasha had returned home with a limp Kagome in his arms, they'd managed to fix her up in time to have her eat a little bit of dinner. She'd been looking fine with her knee bound in a large bandage, and an ever-faithful hanyou obediently at her side to help her walk. But after beating the snot out of Miroku for offering to assist her with her bath, Kagome consequently collapsed in the tub, just as she'd entered the water before passing out and releasing a splashing calamity. Hearing this, Inuyasha was unfortunately the first to enter the scene (being worried as he was), and ended up a sad victim to Sango's harsh pounding to his misunderstood perverted nature. Within minutes, she had Kagome's body neatly wrapped in a large bath towel before she had the hanyou take her upstairs to her room.  
  
Evidently, Kagome was running a fierce fever that made her sweaty all over again after her nice long bath. After dressing her up in a pair of PJs, Sango immediately began the healing process bustling around for needed materials and giving commands to the boys. And now here they were, running around the house to give their dear friend all the comfort they could possibly offer.  
  
"Inuyasha, soak the towel in this water and wipe down her face, okay?"  
  
Inuyasha nodded as he took the towel from Miroku and placed it in the bowl held in Sango's hands. He wrung it out tightly and tenderly dabbed the cold cloth against her brow and cheeks as her sour expression softened.  
  
"Aw shoot, she's burning up big time..."  
  
"Quick, Miroku, could you get the bottle in the pantry that's labeled 'Fever'? It's Kagome's medicine."  
  
The night proceeded likewise for several more hours. Finally, although it was still outrageously high, Kagome's temperature was beginning to steady itself...  
  
...at 12:30 AM.  
  
Sango yawned and stretched, looking down at the electric thermometer with her eyes half-closed.  
  
"100.5 degrees...this is going to take a while... But for now, she needs sleep."  
  
She set the gadget down on the floor and rose to head for the door.   
  
"You guys can head on down to bed now. I'll give her one last check-up after my bath."  
  
Miroku hesitated before exiting the room himself, watching Inuyasha as he sat motionless on the floor, next to Kagome's futon.  
  
"Aren't you going, Inuyasha?"  
  
His white ears twitched a little, but returned to stillness as he spoke.  
  
"I'll keep watch."  
  
"Inuyasha, you will find no demons here. I assure you."  
  
"Stupid monk. Of course I know that."  
  
"Well, then...?"  
  
Inuyasha stubbornly sighed and stretched out on his side, parallel to the bed.  
  
"In case she needs anything, at least I'll be here."  
  
Miroku nodded his head for the hanyou's admirable sense of protection before retreating back to his room.  
  
"Suit yourself. Good night, Inuyasha."  
  
"'Night Miroku."  
  
Once the priest had gone, Inuyasha stood and switched off the light, then laid back down next to Kagome's sleeping figure on the floor. With a free hand, he pulled the covers up to her shoulders to provide more warmth. Then tenderly, he took her milky white hand in his, carefully avoiding his claws to scratch the smooth flesh, and closed his eyes.  
  
They both slept placidly until dawn broke out across the black backdrop of night.  
  
"'Night Kagome."  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
"Inuyasha. Inuyasha."  
  
He felt a gentle hand shaking his shoulder as he slept, curled up on the floor without a blanket.   
  
"Mm...Sango, I'll catch up with you later...go on without me..."  
  
"Inuyasha, Sango-chan isn't here."  
  
He recognized the voice more clearly as his eyes opened wider. He lying down on his side, with his legs tucked into him to keep warm. Abruptly, he looked over his shoulder to see Kagome hovering over him as she had slowly slipped out from beneath her covers on the futon.  
  
"Huh? Ka-gome~? Are...you feeling better~?"  
  
His talk was slurred from his drowsiness. She smiled slightly and nodded, still looking weary and weighed down with fatigue.  
  
"A little bit. Were you sleeping here the whole night?"  
  
He lazily sat up, rubbing his eyes and scratching himself behind the ears sleepily.   
  
"I think so...all I remember was being cold the entire time..."  
  
Laughing, Kagome pulled the covers up around her as she sat up, not wanting to feel the cold air beyond her bed.  
  
"Inuyasha, Miroku-sama and Sango-chan left to go work at the café about an hour ago."  
  
Sighing, he stood up and began to walk out the door.  
  
"Well, that means I'm your temporary parent for today."  
  
She looked up at him, surprised.  
  
"Why? Aren't you going to work too?"  
  
He huffed and headed towards the bathroom.  
  
"Yea, and leave you here with a fever? Don't be stupid."  
  
Kagome blushed crimson as she heard the bathroom door close, and she silently rejoiced to herself for the chance of having some quality 'private' time with her good friend, hanyou, though she would never admit it to anyone else.  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
Miroku finally finished the last of the finishing for their newly made furniture. The tables were now rich with a dark coating, almost to the point of black. He could easily see Kagome's preference of cherry wood.  
  
"Hey, look who's finished!"  
  
Sango walked over with her hands on her hips, examining the tables. He grinned as he tapped his brush against the top of the can.  
  
"Do you like them?"  
  
"I think they're quite lovely."  
  
Sango sighed as she looked around the room, searching for finishing touches to be added. The walls were painted, the floors were inserted, the furniture was painted...now what was left was a large canvas to be mounted onto the large space on the wall, for visitors to doodle on it all they liked. She eyed the canvas on the floor, openly exposing itself, begging to be put up. Pulling on her gloves, she knelt down and measured its dimensions.  
  
She suddenly paused, in the end seating herself on the ground with her body hunched over the canvas.  
  
"Miroku~"  
  
He looked up from stroking one of the completed tables.  
  
"Yes, Sango?"  
  
"I'm thirsty. Can you get something to drink from the vending machine outside?"  
  
She tossed him her coin purse, and he caught it with ease. He smiled as he walked out the door.  
  
"With pleasure."  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
Inuyasha returned minutes later, clothed in a comfortable pair of baggy jeans and a bright red t-shirt. It was close to noon, and in his hands he carried a tray of steaming rice porridge and bowl of miso-soup.  
  
He found Kagome flipping through a new issue of a fashion magazine, raising her eyebrows once in a while to something that caught her interest. She looked up at him, and gave him a surprised look at the sight of his tray.  
  
"Hungry?"  
  
He came to her bedside and she savored the soup's scent.  
  
"Did you make me lunch?"  
  
"Who else? Our invisible robot?"  
  
She smiled slightly at the comment, and took up the chopsticks.  
  
"It looks fine. Thanks a bunch."  
  
She shakily reached out for the bowl, but before her fingers could brush against its wooden rim, her chopsticks went clattering to the floor. Her drowsiness still hadn't gone away.  
  
Inuyasha sighed, and glanced at her sympathetically before picking up the chopsticks and placing it back on the tray. Instead, he took the spoon beside it and lifted the bowl with his other hand. Scooping some of it, he brought it close to Kagome's mouth.  
  
She stared at him for a moment, somewhat dumbfounded at his actions. Her one and only was offering to feed her.  
  
She opened her mouth to protest, embarrassed, but he slipped the spoon cleverly into her lips before she uttered any sound, and she drank. He removed it and scooped again.  
  
"Go on, eat."  
  
"Inuyasha...this is so embarrassing..."  
  
"It's better than making yourself look like a fool, trying to eat with shaky hands. Let me feed you."  
  
Her blush from the fever thickened as she opened her mouth again, and she continued to eat in silence.   
  
In a way, it felt so warm and fuzzy inside.  
  
"Can I try?"  
  
Kagome asked after a while, savoring the soup's light flavor.  
  
"Try what?"  
  
Inuyasha paused from scooping another sip.  
  
"Feeding you?"  
  
He dropped the spoon and gaped at her like she'd gone into hysterics.  
  
"You NUTS?!"  
  
"I'm not! I...just want to try..."  
  
"No. Just eat."  
  
"Please? Just one-"  
  
"No."  
  
"But...but..."  
  
"Just shut up and eat, Kagome."  
  
She sighed, looking disappointed, and he felt his heart sink at the same time her lips curved slightly downwards.  
  
"Man...Kagome, it's just a freaking-"  
  
"Please?"  
  
He looked at her skeptically, and then slowly reached out the spoon to her. She energetically went for it with her hand, and then...she saw the spoon wasn't there anymore. It was behind Inuyasha's back.  
  
"At second thought..."  
  
She frowned, this time, and them leapt out of bed with a pounce and jumped the hanyou straight on. He yelped, and wrestled her until she was awkwardly seated on his lap. He continued to fondle the spoon in his other hand.  
  
"I can't trust you with this thing..."  
  
There was one problem. He hadn't really paid attention to the bowl itself that contained the soup.  
  
Before he knew it, its rim was being shoved into his mouth, and hot soup went plunging down his throat like Niagara Falls. She grinned at him happily as he began to panic.  
  
"I didn't say I had to feed you with the spoon, did I?"  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
Miroku heard the pounding of a hammer as he returned with drinks in both hands. Sango was mounting the canvas onto the wall, and seemed to be struggling with a nail.  
  
"Sango, is this what you wanted?"  
  
She turned abruptly, and her sweating face looked relieved at the sight of a cold can of juice.  
  
"Ooh, yess~!!!"  
  
She was about to leave the nail to retrieve her drink, but realized that if she let go, the canvas would go crashing down. She'd even placed the canvas in the exact spot she wanted it, and it had taken her a while, so she didn't want to set it down and re-adjust everything either. She sighed miserably and looked at Miroku with pleading eyes.  
  
"Can you open the can for me and let me drink?"  
  
He casually did, and she gratefully drank from his hand that held the can. Breathing with refreshment, she turned back to the wall.  
  
"Stupid nail...another favor Miroku-sama, can you hold it still while I hammer it in?"  
  
He steadied the nail with two fingers as she began to hit its head. But one slip, and he felt the hammer head hit his fingertips.  
  
"Augh!"  
  
"Oh no! Miroku, are you alright?!"  
  
She took the hand that he cradled tenderly and examined it. With sudden swiftness, she brought her lips to his fingers and kissed each tip in comfort.  
  
He just stared. Astounded.  
  
She looked up at him shyly and patted his wounded hand.   
  
"I'm really sorry...you can hit me back if you want...?"  
  
He held in the laughter that began to creep up his throat. Out of nowhere, an idea came to mind.  
  
She looked down at his fingers a second time and cringed.  
  
"Oh man...you might have bruises building...I wonder if there's any way I can..."  
  
She looked up, and her heart skipped a single beat as she saw him approach another step closer. He was dangerously near.  
  
"Mirok-"  
  
Her lips were suddenly silenced.  
  
*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*-.,.-*  
  
TO BE CONTINUED...  
  
Sorry, I know you're probably feeling murderous right now! (^__^;;) Forgiveness! Mercy!! But hope you enjoyed it anyway!! 


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